Clementine Sorbet

When you think of desserts at this festive time of year you do tend to veer towards the hearty puddings packed with dried fruit and spices. Now those are lovely, don’t get me wrong on that one, but sometimes it is nice to ring the changes and embrace something a wee bit different.

These clementine sorbets do tick the traditional box in that it is a fruit that is always popular at Christmas (must have one in the stocking every year!) but instead of being a hot pudding these tasty fruits have been transformed so very easily into a delectable dessert, all chilly and frozen with a warming kick of grand marnier to tickle the taste buds!

How To Make Clementine Sorbets (4)

Slice the tops off the clementines and then carefully scoop out all the flesh.

Press the flesh through a sieve with the back of a wooden spoon to extract all the juice you can, do this with all the clementines.

You should have approximately 250ml/1 cup of juice, make this up to 500ml/2 cups with the addition of good quality pure orange juice.

Pour the juice into a small pan and add 60ml/1/4 cup of runny honey and heat gently stirring well to dissolve the honey. Remove from heat and cool completely.

Add 2 shots of Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur.

Chill the mixture completely.

Now you can either process the sorbet mixture in an ice-cream maker and then scoop into the reserved clementine shells and pop into the freezer for an hour to firm up, or you can pour the juice into a shallow metal tin and freeze until firm and then rake through the crystals with a fork to form a granita. Scoop this into the reserves shells and pop back into the freezer for just a few minutes to firm them up again.

Some of the markets just now are selling clementines with their leaves on. If you can get those even better, make sure you store the carefully emptied fruit peel shells and lids in the fridge while you make the sorbet/granita as you don’t want them to dry out.

Once you have filled your clementine sorbet shells you can refreeze them and store in the freezer till a later date – maybe as a super treat to welcome in the New Year.